Collaborative online projects

The increasingly interconnected world in which we live - the goods we buy, the food we eat, the media we see and the people we meet and communicate with - includes an ever increasing number of countries around the world. This has created many opportunities and responsibilities for individuals and groups to take personal, social, and political action globally. Global education aims to develop the skills, knowledge and attitudes needed for responsible participation in a democratic society and the global community. It is more than getting an in-depth understanding of a specific area or region of the world. It is about developing a sense of shared identity, appreciation of cultural diversity, a positive regard for the rights and identities of others and ability to communicate effectively and sensitively across cultures. For more details see the Global Perspectives: a statement for Australian schools. http://www.globaleducation.edna.edu.au/globaled/page122.html Collaborative web projects Online collaborative projects are one way in which teachers and students can expand their views of themselves in relation to the other places around the world. Building on the (almost) instant responses of ICT teachers and students are working in a variety of ways from email and web logs to building websites and learning circles. Cultural sensitivity is important and usefulness can be limited because of differing access to technology, time zones and summer holidays. Teachers of the future initiative - Pacific Albatross Network The purpose of the Teachers of the Future Initiative is to provide a place for educators in Pacific nations to be involved in online professional learning and networking. The educator network is in its pilot phase and is seeking new members to trial some of the network activities and features including: PAN Learning Cloth. Contribute to the development of an online work-of-art in partnership with your local and regional colleagues and students Discussion Forum. Enter the online forum and participate in the discussion threads, nominate a discussion topic or just read what other members are talking about Weblinks. Share web-based resources by posting information about your favourite online educational resources and using the resources that others recommend Noticeboard. Tell other members about what's happening in your place; share good ideas for teaching and learning; seek out other schools to work with on a project; seek out other educators who can share useful information, ideas and resources. Resources development. Use the publishing tools to develop educational resources. Work on an idea by yourself or in partnership with other PAN members and then share the resource with everyone. Real-time Chat. Use the Chat Rooms in the Team Login area for real time meetings and discussions with local and regional colleagues. http://www.unesco-tofi.org Support for international projects Many Non-Government Organisations work directly with local communities and can provide more specific information about people and local issues. They offer a variety of information and opportunities for links between schools in Australia and developing countries depending on their perspective and operations. Use this link to find other organisations listed on the global education website http://www.globaleducation.edna.edu.au/globaled/browse/21299,21079

Air Pollution: What's the Solution? URL:  http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/airproj/ Through this project, students will focus on outdoor air pollution; what it is, what factors contribute to its formation and the health effects from breathing polluted air. Students will use data and animated maps from the Internet and monitor for the presence of air pollution. Students are challenged to think critically and creatively about the problems surrounding air pollution. Alola Foundation URL:  http://www.alolafoundation.org/ The Alola Foundation is working for the advancement of the women of East Timor in areas such as: advocacy, economic empowerment, education and literacy, maternal and child health and humanitarian assistance. Be More URL:  http://www.bemore.org.au/ The Be More Challenge invites you to take action for environmental and social justice. By setting 5 challenges - personal, family, local, national and global - you can change not only the way in which you live in the world but the world itself. The Be More Challenge is aimed at tackling global poverty and injustice by 'doing' justice. Challenge 20/20 URL:  http://www.nais.org/resources/index.cfm?ItemNumber=147262 Challenge 20/20 is an Internet-based program that pairs classes at any grade level (K-12) from schools in the U.S. with their counterpart classes in schools in other countries; together the teams (of two or three schools) tackle real global problems to find solutions that can be implemented at the local level and in their own communities. Collaborative International Boiling Point Science Education Project URL:  http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/boilproj/ In this international project, students discover which factor in a boiling point experiment has the greatest influence on boiling point. Students use data from all participants to develop scientific theories and hypotheses. The Day I Was Born Online Project URL:  http://www.dayiwasborn.net/templates/System/default.asp?id=40333 The purpose of this project is to use the Internet to find and share important & interesting information about what was happening in the world when you were born. You will collect, record and organise data before putting it all together & sharing it with schools from around the world. With your teacher's permission, you will become an author of the first online, student researched history book! Down the Drain URL:  http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/drainproj/ How much water do you use everyday in your home? Would you be surprised to learn that according to the USGS the average American uses between 300 - 375 litres of water per day? Do you think people in other parts of the world use more or less water than Americans? Well, this collaborative project will help you find out the answers to these questions. By collecting data on water usage from people around the world you will be able to see how your water use compares to others and determine what you might do to use less water. ENO - Environment Online URL:  http://eno.joensuu.fi/index_content.htm Coordinated by Pataluoto School and administrated by the Department of Education in Joensuu, Finland, ENO-Environment Online is a global virtual school for environmental awareness. Four different environmental themes (Social, Natural, Cultural Environment and Sustainable Development) are studied within a school year on a weekly basis. ENO schools learn from each other, submit data from their local environments and analyse it. Everyone Counts URL:  http://www.everyonecounts.com/ E1C provides systems and services around the collection of sensitive information over the Internet; safely collecting votes, personal information and student assessment data and votes from anyone in the world for any type of election, poll or survey. Tools such as eLect (for elections) and eQuest (for surveys) enable administrators and non-programmers to do it themselves by helping to automate some of the critical tasks in e-governance. Built on open systems, there is a public demonstration site and an eCCE project that aims to use ICT to illustrate and expand on the content and goals of Discovering Democracy and similar civis and citizenship curriculum content. Global Projects Online: Be aware of Biodiversity URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/course/view.php?id=127 This online project from OzProjects, aims to engage students in a celebration of biodiversity and increase their understanding of this global issue in 2010 the International Year of Biodiversity. It includes activities and resources for students from lower primary to lower secondary. Global Projects Online: Discover natural fibres URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/course/view.php?id=57 This project has been created in recognition of 2009 being the Year of Natural Fibres. It includes links to resources and activities to increase student understanding of the importance of natural fibres. Global Projects Online: FIFA World Cup 2010 URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/course/view.php?id=132 This online project from OzProjects, allows students to celebrate the FIFA World Cup 2010 whilst also learning about some of the global issues facing South Africa and participating nations. Global Projects Online: Forests: a global perspective URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/course/view.php?id=172 This project aims to engage students in a celebration of forests and increase their understanding of the global issue of sustainable use of forests for 2011 the International Year of Forests. It includes activities and resources for students from lower primary to lower secondary. Global Projects Online: Millennium Development Goals URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/course/view.php?id=75 This project aims to assist in developing local and global citizenship by providing opportunities for Primary Years students to participate in an online learning community with a focus on the Millennium Development Goals. Global Projects Online: People of the Pacific URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/course/view.php?id=126 This online project from OzProjects, is a place for students to develop knowledge and understanding of the Pacific people and their cultures. By collaborating online students will develop an appreciation of our responsibilities as global citizens and explore opportunities to take action. Global SchoolHouse Internet Projects Registry URL:  http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsh/pr/ Global SchoolHouse provides online opportunities for teachers to collaborate, communicate, and celebrate shared learning experiences. Global SchoolNet's mission is to identify, support, and encourage effective practices and programs that engage students in meaningful content and personal exchanges with people around the world to develop basic and advanced literacy and communication skills, create multi-cultural understanding, and prepare them for full participation as productive and effective citizens in an increasing global economy. Global Schools CyberFair URL:  http://www.globalschoolnet.org/gsncf/index.cfm The Global Schools CyberFair demonstrates how schools can share the knowledge and skills of their teachers and students on a world-wide basis. Building on the global Internet World Wide Web, children in schools around the world contribute valuable intellectual content to the global Internet library and create usable curricular content for use by students around the world. Global Water Sampling Project URL:  http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/waterproj/index.shtml For a defined period each year, students will team up around the globe to test fresh water. This collaborative project will compare the water quality of your local river, stream, lake or pond with other fresh water sources around the world. The focus of the project is to assess the quality of water based on physical characteristics and chemical substances and to look for relationships and trends among the data collected by all project participants. Students will submit their results to the project web site, which will be posted to a database for all participants to examine. During the project, students can discuss their questions, finding, and theories with other participants. Final reports will be posted on the project web site. Gulf Stream Voyage URL:  http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/gulfstream/index.shtml The Gulf Stream Voyage is an online multidisciplinary project which utilises both real time data and primary source materials to help guide students to discover the science and history of the Gulf Stream. Students will investigate this great ocean current, how it affects the Atlantic Ocean and some of mankind's experiences dealing with it. This voyage includes activities for marine science, earth science, chemistry, physics, biology, maths, history and language arts. All may be easily used in today's technology enhanced classroom. International Tooth Tally Project URL:  http://www.toothtally.com/default.htm The Tooth Tally Project gives teachers a way to integrate a common event in the life of a first grader - losing a tooth - with reading, maths, writing, social studies, and technology. Using "lost tooth" data collected in the classroom first graders will practice counting skills and collecting data. They will learn to make and interpret graphs, develop map skills, and communicate through email and web2 technology. It's a wonderful opportunity for children to realise that in spite of many differences children all around the world have many similarities, too. Meaning of First Names Project URL:  http://ziv.jerusalem.muni.il/engnames.html An online school project for exploring the meaning of first names from different cultures, languages and countries. Musical Plates: A Study of Plate Tectonics URL:  http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/musicalplates3/en/ Earthquakes, a scientific and physical phenomenon, affect our lives in many ways. In this project, students use Real-Time earthquake and volcano data from the Internet to explore the relationship between earthquakes, plate tectonics, and volcanoes. Noon Day Project URL:  http://www.ciese.org/curriculum/noonday/ The Goal of the Noon Day Project is to have students measure the circumference of the earth using a method that was first used by Eratosthenes over 2000 years ago. Students at various sites around the world will measure shadows cast by a meter stick and compare their results. From this data students will be able to calculate the circumference of the earth. One World Project URL:  http://oneworld.pnn.com/241-owp-front-page Originally there was the ePal Project - my students, who are English Learners, writing to other English Learners around the world to learn about their countries and cultures. In 2006 our project grew to be the One World Project with the goal of learning about one another by sharing ideas and creating podcasts based on what we learn from our partners and each other. The main goal of this project is to promote cross-cultural understanding by giving students topics to write about and speak about that are relevant to them and having them discover that we have a lot in common. OneWorld Classrooms URL:  http://www.ccproject.org/ OneWorld Classrooms partners K-12 classrooms from around the world and provides free curriculum-based online travel resources about the Amazon Rain Forest, Africa, the Galapagos Islands, the Arctic and China. OzProjects: Explore Asia Online URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/course/view.php?id=68 This project has been created to provide easy access to online resources about Asia. Students can share their knowledge by adding information to a glossary, database or forum. or challenge others by creating an online quiz. OzProjects: online projects for teachers and their students URL:  http://www.ozprojects.edu.au/ OzProjects is an Australian site that celebrates online curriculum projects and the world of unique learning opportunities such projects offer students and teachers. Access online project support resources and a range of online tools for your online projects. Oz-TeacherNet: Teachers Helping Teachers URL:  http://www.oz-teachernet.edu.au/ Oz-TeacherNet was established in 1995 to provide teachers with an infrastructure for using the Internet to support professional development and curriculum design. The oz-TeacherNet projects and communities are managed and developed by the RITE (Research in Information Technology Education) Group based at QUT, Brisbane, Australia, and include online communities for Gifted Education, Vocational Education, Indigenous Education, Educational Professionals, Project Related Communities, Community Forums and RITE MOO. Projects include: Book Raps, Travel Buddies, Project Atmosphere, Virtual Field Trips, Students & Industry Links, QA Reference Group and Global Youth Forums. Population Growth Project URL:  http://www.k12science.org/curriculum/popgrowthproj/ This series of activities explores the mathematical and environmental aspects of population growth. How fast is the population growing? Has it always grown at this rate? Are the populations of different countries growing differently? How can we predict the population in the future? How will a growing population impact the environment? Potato Activity URL:  http://alupton.wordpress.com/2006/02/13/the-potato-activity/ Account of a human rights class activity from the blog of South Australian teacher Al Upton and the miniLegends (his Year 3/4 class).

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